January 19, 2022 (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – This afternoon, the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (H.R. 2773), which is led by Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus (CSC) Co-Chair Representative Debbie Dingell (MI) and CSC Member Representative Jeff Fortenberry (NE), passed the House Natural Resources Committee on a bipartisan vote. 

The passage of Recovering America’s Wildlife Act by the Natural Resources Committee marks a significant step forward for one of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s (CSF) top legislative priorities. Prior to the Committee’s vote, CSF sent an action alert to members of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus on the Natural Resources Committee urging them to support America’s 55 million sportsmen and women by voting “yes” on H.R. 2773. Furthermore, CSF helped lead a letter that was signed by more than 40 of the nation’s leading sporting-conservation organizations to urge the Committee to pass H.R. 2773. 

Recovering America’s Wildlife Act is a proactive, cost-saving piece of legislation that would invest $1.3 billion annually to state fish and wildlife agencies and $97.5 million annually to Tribal fish and wildlife managers to further on-the-ground fish, wildlife, and plant conservation efforts. Specifically, funding provided through H.R. 2773, combined with a 25% non-federal match, would fully fund each state’s Congressionally mandated, but severely unfunded, State Wildlife Action Plan. Collectively, these plans have identified nearly 12,000 Species of Greatest Conservation Need, including many iconic species that are well known to us all such as Northern Bobwhite quail, monarchs, gopher tortoise, and countless waterfowl species, all of which need a dedicated source of conservation funding before more regulatory and costly measures are necessary.

“The Committee passage of Recovering America’s Wildlife Act is a direct result of the tireless efforts of CSC Co-Chair Congresswoman Dingell and CSC Member Congressman Fortenberry to champion this monumental legislation,” said CSF President and CEO Jeff Crane. “This legislation is a smart, strategic effort to provide a desperately needed source of dedicated funding to address the 21st century conservation challenges facing our fish and wildlife managers today.” 

The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation will continue to advocate for this historic legislation and will urge the House to bring this bill to the floor for a final vote in the House.